Ruud Geels

Geertruida "Ruud" Maria Geels (Dutch pronunciation: [ˈɣeːr.ˌtrœy̯.daː (ˈryt) mɑ.ˈrijaː ˈɣeːls]; 28 July 1948 – 18 November 2023) was a Dutch professional footballer who played as a striker.

Ruud Geels

Geels in 1974
Personal information
Full name	Geertruida Maria Geels
Date of birth	(1948-07-28)28 July 1948
Place of birth	Haarlem, Netherlands
Date of death	18 November 2023(2023-11-18) (aged 75)
Position(s)	Striker
Youth career
	RKVV DSS
	RKSV Onze Gezellen
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
1964–1966	Telstar	8	(5)
1966–1970	Feijenoord	89	(46)
1970–1972	Go Ahead Eagles	62	(35)
1972–1974	Club Brugge	53	(28)
1974–1978	Ajax	131	(123)
1978–1979	Anderlecht	28	(25)
1979–1981	Sparta	48	(35)
1981–1982	PSV	32	(15)
1982–1984	NAC	22	(6)
Total		473	(318)
National team
1974–1981	Netherlands	20	(11)
Honours Representing Netherlands FIFA World Cup Runner-up 1974 West Germany UEFA European Championship 1976 Yugoslavia
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only

Geels died in 18 November 2023, at the age of 75.

Career statistics

Club

Appearances and goals by club, season and competition

Club	Season	League			Cup		Europe		Other		Total
		Division	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
Telstar	1965–66	Eredivisie	8	5			—		—		8	5
Feijenoord	1966–67	Eredivisie	25	8			—		—		25	8
	1967–68	Eredivisie	32	20			—		—		32	20
	1968–69	Eredivisie	20	10			1	0	—		21	10
	1969–70	Eredivisie	12	8			4	6	—		16	14
	Total		89	46			5	6	—		94	52
Go Ahead Eagles	1970–71	Eredivisie	34	17			—		—		34	17
	1971–72	Eredivisie	28	18			—		—		28	18
	Total		62	35			—		—		62	35
Club Brugge	1972–73	Belgian First Division	23	10			4	2	—		27	12
	1973–74	Belgian First Division	30	18			4	0	—		34	18
	Total		53	28			8	2	—		61	30
Ajax	1974–75	Eredivisie	32	30			5	1	—		37	31
	1975–76	Eredivisie	33	29			6	11	—		39	40
	1976–77	Eredivisie	34	34			2	0	—		36	34
	1977–78	Eredivisie	32	30	1	0	6	3	—		39	33
	Total		131	123	1	0	19	15	—		151	138
Anderlecht	1978–79	Belgian First Division	28	25			2	0	2	0	32	25
Sparta Rotterdam	1979–80	Eredivisie	18	13			—		—		18	13
	1980–81	Eredivisie	30	22			—		—		30	22
	Total		48	35			—		—		48	35
PSV	1981–82	Eredivisie	28	15			4	3	—		32	18
	1982–83	Eredivisie	4	0			0	0	—		4	0
	Total		32	15			4	3	—		36	18
NAC	1982–83	Eredivisie	22	6			—		—		22	6
Career total			473	318	1	0	38	26	2	0	513	344

International

Appearances and goals by national team and year

National team	Year	Apps	Goals
Netherlands	1974	5	1
	1975	3	1
	1976	4	3
	1977	3	2
	1978	2	3
	1979	1	0
	1980	0	0
	1981	2	1
Total		20	11

Honours

Feyenoord

• Eredivisie: 1968–69
• KNVB Cup: 1968–69
• European Cup: 1969–70

Club Brugge

• Belgian First Division: 1972–73

Ajax

• Eredivisie: 1976–77

Anderlecht

• UEFA Super Cup: 1978
• Belgian Sports Merit Award: 1978

Individual

• Eredivisie Top Scorer: 1974–75, 1975–76, 1976–77, 1977–78, 1980–81
• UEFA Cup Top Scorer: 1975–76
• World XI: 1976